Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations

‘This Is Feel Good Legislation’ For Lawmakers: Critics Blast ‘Right To Try’ Bill As Harmful To Patients

Experts in the industry have been speaking out against the right-to-try movement, saying it will just set up patients for disappointment. Lawmakers are expected to vote on a House version of the bill as early as Tuesday.

Politico:
Right-To-Try Drug Bill Could Needlessly Raise Patients' Hopes, Experts Say
Congress may be on a speedy path to lifting the hopes of terminally ill patients. Whether it’s anything more than a feel-good exercise is an open question. The House of Representatives is expected to deliver the deciding vote for a right-to-try bill Tuesday that President Donald Trump touted in his State of the Union address and would give terminally ill patients — or those likely to die prematurely — access to experimental medicines without the FDA’s blessing. The Senate, which already passed its own bill, is considered likely to adopt the changes. (Karlin-Smith, 3/13)

Stat:
'Right-To-Try' Bill Would Give FDA Some Oversight, But Still Frustrates Critics
A new “right-to-try” bill hurtling toward a House vote this week would give the Food and Drug Administration some oversight of experimental treatments permitted under a new process, but critics warn that it would still undermine the agency’s role in protecting patients. The new legislation, from House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden (R-Ore.), is the latest salvo in the effort to create a new pathway for patients with terminal illness to access experimental therapies. The House of Representatives is set to vote on the measure Tuesday, after which it will head back to the Senate for further consideration. (Mershon, 3/12)

The Hill:
Key Democrat Comes Out Against 'Right To Try' Bill
The top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee announced his strong opposition Monday to a revised version of the “right to try” bill on experimental drugs that the panel’s top Republicans introduced over the weekend. The bill “puts vulnerable patients at risk by completely removing the Food and Drug Administration [FDA] from the review or oversight of access to investigational therapies,” Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.), the Energy and Commerce Committee’s ranking member, said in a statement. (Roubein, 3/12)

CQ:
Key Democrat Urges Opposition To 'Right To Try' Bill
Pallone noted that the Food and Drug Administration already approves the vast majority of requests that it receives from patients who want permission to use treatments that the agency has not yet approved. Critics say that the bill would do little to help patients overcome their biggest obstacle — drug companies' reluctance to provide the drugs.
“This legislation simply is not needed,” Pallone said in a statement. “It also provides false hope to patients and their families, who will assume they will have access to investigational therapies even though the bill does nothing to require manufacturers to provide these therapies to the patient.” (McIntire, 3/12)

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